Playing pranks by telling lies is a common form of mischief. After all, there’s even a day dedicated to it—April Fool’s Day.
‘Can’t even lie properly.’
A statement that couldn’t possibly be true. In other words, a lie. So, Baekwolseon dismissed Hong Jinseon’s words as nonsense.
"I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true. Ihayul has manifested Changhae."
"Is that really true?"
At first, it sounded unbelievable. After hearing the same statement for the second time, Baekwolseon couldn’t help but reconsider.
Baekwolseon and Hong Jinseon had known each other for over fifty years.
Naturally, they knew each other’s personalities very well.
A man with a fiery temper, yet always appearing composed on the outside. He wasn’t the type to spout nonsense about such serious matters.
“No, that doesn’t make sense...”
Even with that in mind, it was hard to believe.
Baekwolseon crumpled his face as he spoke, while Hong Jinseon casually sipped his tea and placed a device on the table.
“Take a look at this first.”
A hologram soon appeared in the air. Baekwolseon’s mouth fell open as he witnessed the evidence with his own eyes.
“...Is it a trick? You’ve really put a lot of effort into this prank.”
“The members who were on the scene saw it with their own eyes, so you can ask the ones who returned.”
“Wait a second, this isn’t Changhae, it’s Taesan, right?”
“Both Changhae and Taesan are present.”
“F*ck.”
Unable to hold back, an expletive slipped from Baekwolseon’s lips. It was crude, but Hong Jinseon nodded as if he understood.
There was no way he couldn’t understand. After all, Hong Jinseon himself didn’t believe it either.
“What is this...”
While Hong Jinseon, already prepared for the shock, remained calm, Baekwolseon couldn’t close his mouth.
The confusion was so strong that the teacup in his hand began to freeze bit by bit.
Baekwolseon shakily pointed at the hologram.
“Is this... is this possible?”
Impossible. That was the conclusion Baekwolseon had already reached deep inside. But the reality, seen with his own eyes, was different.
In the hologram, Ihayul appeared.
When thinking about his daughter, Baekwolseon felt an uncomfortable expression rising, and his brows furrowed as if seeing a ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) corpse, with Changhae and Taesan coexisting in one body, making his head spin.
"Wouldn’t it be easier to accept it calmly?"
“Damn... You’ve learned Tai Chi recently, haven’t you?”
Baekwolseon couldn’t help but scowl, realizing that he had been tricked by his own words. It snapped his disoriented consciousness back to the present.
“Hah... okay, I’ll have to believe it for now. We can question the soldiers who witnessed it.”
Baekwolseon sighed heavily and raised his teacup, only to lower his hand awkwardly after realizing the tea had frozen solid.
It wasn’t due to Hong Jinseon’s joke, but rather, the chill from Changhae that froze his mind.
“Clearly, this isn’t a trivial matter. It’s so heavy that I’m afraid to even try to bear it.”
“Your daughter could have passed it on, but I thought it would be better if I told you directly, so I came.”
“Well, that’s true. But... Ihayul has both Changhae...”
At the same time, he manifested Taesan as well. As he said it, he couldn’t believe it himself, letting out a hollow laugh.
‘Geophae? Changhae? Taesan? All in one body? Is that even possible?’
Changhae made sense. There might be a bloodline the family didn’t know about.
The same went for Taesan and Geophae. Even the main family couldn’t have perfectly identified all the bloodlines that came from the founding ancestors.
Of course, he couldn’t explain why the physical traits were different, but Geophae’s family likely enrolled Ihayul because of that.
After regaining his composure, Baekwolseon asked.
“Anyway, if Taesan is involved, we’ll need to call in Ijia. We’ll have to call a Three Generations meeting.”
A Three Generations meeting.
This was a gathering where the heads of the three major families discussed important matters.
It wasn’t something held regularly. Since the families weren’t in a position to act casually, it was only convened for significant reasons.
“Aah... But will Ijia even come? She’s been holed up in the family for over ten years, refusing to leave even when there’s something important.”
Baekwolseon, leaning his chin on his hand, shrugged.
Everyone knew Ijia, the current head of Taesan, was reclusive.
The exact reason was unclear.
Hong Jinseon, Baekwolseon, and Ijia were all peers of the same generation.
They were born in the same era, interacted closely between families, competed in good faith, and became heads of their respective families around the same time.
They had come to regard each other as friends, but at some point, Ijia had drawn a line, claiming it was an “internal family matter” and withdrew from external activities.
“She did come to the Founding Ceremony this year.”
“True. But why did she suddenly go there... Wait a second. Didn’t she already know about this?”
“...I’m not sure.”
“Could it be that only the two of us didn’t know?”
Ji...?
As Baekwolseon continued joking, a thought suddenly struck him.
The question from his beloved daughter Baekarin, which had passed by just months ago, suddenly came to mind.
It might have just been a curious question back then. He had thought so at the time.
Although Baekarin could sometimes be surprisingly smart and perceptive, she was still young.
But now, given the circumstances, it didn’t seem like that was the case.
Ihayul, who manifested Geophae, had been strangely close to Baekarin!
‘She already knew?’
Baekarin had already known about this.
‘Why, why didn’t she tell me...?’
This secret came as a mental shock.
Baekwolseon, as the head of the Changhae family and Baekarin’s father, should have been the person she trusted and relied on, both publicly and privately.
If such a secret existed, shouldn’t she have told him?
“......”
“...Why do you look like that?”
“Uhm... This matter is so shocking, it’s making my head spin.”
“Certainly.”
Baekwolseon’s excuse was met with a nod of agreement from Hong Jinseon.
They both shared the same sense of confusion.
...
Around the time the background situation had calmed down somewhat.
Ijiyon returned to the Taesan family’s main house with the family’s troops.
“Ugh... Finally back to my hometown like a dog!”
“Don’t use such vulgar words.”
“Ah, I’m sorry—!”
“No, don’t bow down...! I didn’t say you had to do that!”
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“Ah, I’m really sorry...!”
“...Sigh.”
Ijiyon let out a deep sigh at their blatant playful response.
It took a while to return to the family’s estate.
Due to security reasons, the gates weren’t connected within the territory.
Therefore, they had to reach the Seoul Gate Terminal first and take a separate vehicle to enter the estate.
During that time, Ijiyon had been the target of pranks from the army members riding in the same vehicle.
At first, they had been awkward and cautious around her, but later, they seemed to get used to her presence and began teasing her.
“I’d handle the follow-up processing. I’ll report to the family head.”
“Yes, understood.”
...
“Junior... I’ve confirmed that Ihayul manifested Taesan.”
In the Taesan family’s main house, Ijiyon immediately went to find Ijia to report.
The task was to confirm the existence of Taesan in Ihayul. This was in line with the instructions given by Ijia since last summer break.
“I’ve also confirmed that he manifested Changhae.”
In addition to the instructions, she had achieved even more. Ihayul not only manifested Taesan but also Changhae. How had she found this out?
‘I can’t stop this on my end.’
Most of the soldiers who witnessed it with their own eyes had already reported it.
There was no way to hide this from Ijia, the current head of the family.
‘...What will happen...?’
While maintaining a neutral expression, Ijiyon pondered deeply inside.
Though she was the heir to the Taesan family, Ijia, the current family head, was the one who led the family.
How would she accept Ihayul’s existence? Ijiyon couldn’t predict the thoughts of her stoic mother.
“Alright, good work.”
“...Yes.”
Just as expected, Ijia nodded without any emotion.
She would probably issue the necessary formalities and then summon the council to discuss it, based on past experience.
“The heads of the Geophae and Changhae families have likely received the same report, so there will be a meeting.”
But this time, there was more.
As Ijiyon was preparing to leave, her eyes widened slightly.
“During that meeting, Ihayul, the parties involved, and the heads will discuss it. However, it can’t be rushed. There’s a lot of preparation needed for the meeting.”
“Yes.”
“Also, since the head of the Changhae family is absent due to the newly formed S-rank labyrinth, and the head of Geophae is busy chasing after the assassin, the situation doesn’t allow for an immediate meeting.”
Ijiyon, surprised, listened attentively to Ijia’s explanation.
“No matter how important the issue is, it’s not the right time for an urgent meeting. We need a bit of time before the meeting, so keep that in mind.”
“Yes, understood.”
Once Ijia finished speaking, she turned to gaze out the window. Her green eyes focused on something, though it was unclear exactly what she was looking at.
“I’ll be staying at the Sammaek until the meeting.”
“Sammaek, you mean?”
Ijiyon blinked in surprise.
There were many special management areas in Taesan’s territory.
There were areas that needed to be carefully treated, such as rare herbs, monsters raised in harsh environments, and rare ecosystems or dungeons.
Among them, Sammaek (the Dead Vein) and Saemaek (the Living Vein) were the most important.
Sammaek was a place filled with life energy, ideal for practicing Taesan’s earth manipulation and vitality control.
On the other hand, Saemaek was a place where death energy accumulated.
It was a dangerous area where spirits formed on their own, and even an ordinary superhuman would risk damage if they entered without care.
“While I’m in Sammaek, you will act as the heir and take on the duties of the family head.”
“...Yes... Yes, yes?”
Ijiyon, still stunned by the news of staying in Sammaek, blinked as the next statement hit her.
...
The head of the family’s office was filled with silence.
Ijia stared at a particular spot.
It was the same room where Ijiyon had just made a fuss about being the family head’s proxy.
The reports that Ijiyon had given. And the instructions she had received to confirm it.
As she recalled these, Ijia nodded.
She had already known.
Ijia gently rubbed her eyes and thought back to the snake’s gaze that had once crossed her field of vision.
The Two-Headed Dragon.
Decades ago, it had been a third-tier Alpha monster that she and the heads of the three families personally hunted down.
Although they had shattered it into pieces too small to be used as a spirit, it had eventually risen again as a spirit.
However, the worst-case scenario she had feared didn’t occur.
Thanks to Ihayul, who had personally dealt with it before it could rampage.
More decisively than even Ijia herself, to ensure there was no room for it to be misused.
‘.......’
The final strike that had ended the Two-Headed Dragon.
The scene where three-colored energy had converged was still vivid in her mind.
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